A timely photo display in Davis

Garth Lenz, an internationally renowned, environmental photo-journalist, will present his award-winning slideshow talk "The True Cost of Oil" on the Alberta Tar Sands in the Blanchard Room of the Yolo County Library, Mary L. Stephens Davis Branch from 7 to 8:30 p.m., Tuesday.

Suggested donation $10 to defray travel expenses. No one, however, will be turned away.

"Canada's Tar Sands are perhaps the most visually compelling example of all that is wrong with our addiction to fossil fuels and why we must change or face dire consequences for all life on Earth," states Lenz. His TED talk on the Tar Sands has been visited over 700,000 times.

Best known for his work presenting environmental and social justice issues, Garth has photographed extensively throughout Canada's temperate rainforest and boreal forests, gathering images that show the plight of the pristine Canadian boreal region and its people who are now confronted by a vast industrial project.

The Alberta Tar Sands are the third largest, most carbon- intensive oil reserves on the planet, and many believe their exploitation is a global threat to climate stability.

For those who have been curious about the Keystone XL Pipeline and the controversy over President Obama's pending decision to approve it or not, this slideshow allows viewers to see the actual mines and the areas affected by them, and provides an opportunity to enter into discussion with a well-informed Canadian who has visited the Tar Sands many times.

Sponsored by Cool Davis, the Church and Society Committee of the United Methodist Church of Davis and the Sierra Club Yolano Group.